1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to accessories used during fishing, boating, camping, etc. and, more particularly, to a fishing rod holder with an integral fish cleaning/filleting work surface that may be attached to all types of vertical members (e.g. pier pilings, bridge structures, trees).
2. Description of the Background
While fishing with a fishing pole, it is frequently necessary for a fisherman to use both hands for threading a line and/or attaching lures, hooks, leaders, etc. to the line. Other tasks requiring the use of both hands include baiting the hook, cleaning fouled hooks, and removing fish that have been caught. Freeing both hands from the fishing pole normally means that the fisherman must let go of the fishing pole, running the risk of dropping it into the water or fouling the reel or line. While in may be possible, when fishing from the shore, to lean the pole against a chair or pier/bridge railing, the pole often falls down. In addition to the inconvenience of having to retrieve it, the fishing pole can be damaged when it falls. Furthermore, the fishing pole's line can become tangled when it falls over, especially when several adjacent fishing poles fall together into a pile.
On frequent occasions fishermen prefer to relax and fish “hands free,” or to fish utilizing multiple fishing poles simultaneously. In these situations conventional rod holders allow the fisherman to take his hands off the fishing pole while having it rest in an upwardly inclined orientation. This way they can attend to other tasks such as eating a snack or opening a canned beverage. However, existing rod holders are designed for permanent mounting on a boat or dock. In most cases, a fisherman does not own the location from which he fishes and it is not proper to permanently attach rod holder(s). Of course, many do it anyway and they are the ire of marina owners whose docks and pylons are fraught with nails.
In addition to the above-described need for temporary rod holders, the typical fisherman has many other support-related needs when dock-fishing and yet, invariably, has no means of achieving the required support. For example, cleaning and filleting the day's catch requires a filleting table or appropriate work surface, one that is sufficient in surface area to accommodate fish of varying sizes, sturdy enough to withstand the downward force required to cut off the head or tail of a fish, and resistant to the effects of the bladed instrument used for cutting purposes. Few docks or dock owners gratuitously provide filleting tables for fisherman, nor do they appreciate filleting without one.
There is a significant consumer demand for fishing accessories that can be transported by fisherman to the dock in satisfaction of the above-described needs, and be utilized without defacing the dock in any way. Of course, any fishing pole support apparatus and/or cleaning/filleting work surface must be sufficiently light in weight and appropriate in size to be easily and readily transported along with the rest of the fisherman's gear. Indeed, it would be best to provide a single multi-functional device to fill all such needs. This would increase both functionality and portability at the fishing site, which may be some distance from where the fisherman parks his/her vehicle.
The present inventor is not the first to address the need for a means of supporting a fishing pole in a “hands free” manner, or to provide a readily transportable table for fish filleting/cleaning, or to combine a “hands free” fishing pole support apparatus with a surface suitable for the cleaning/filleting process. Examples of apparatus for these purposes may be found in U.S. Pat. Nos. 3,344,551 and 4,497,129 to Chestnut, U.S. Pat. No. 5,542,359 to Polries, U.S. Pat. No. 5,860,367 to Riegel et al., U.S. Pat. No. 5,915,942 to Ratliffe, and U.S. Pat. No. 6,269,990 to Gray, as well as U.S. Des. Pat. No. 231,525 to Curtis.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,915,942 to Ratliffe discloses a fishing rod holder that may be used to secure a fishing rod to a boat, pier, or other support structure. The device includes an elongated tubular housing and a bracket upon which the housing may be removably seated. The bracket may be attached to horizontal support structures via a shepherd's hook, or to vertical support structures via straps.
U.S. Pat. No. 6,269,990 to Gray discloses an apparatus for holding a fishing rod that includes a tube for receiving the end of the fishing rod to a depth effective to retain the fishing rod therein, and a leg brace for releasable attachment to a leg of the user. The leg brace includes a shaped rigid member that partially surrounds the leg, and a plurality of attachment straps.
U.S. Des. Pat. No. 231,525 to Curtis discloses a fishing pole holder with adjustable attachment straps and a compartment to which a fish stringer holder may be attached.
U.S. Pat. Nos. 3,344,551 and 4,497,129 to Chestnut disclose fishing rod holders having ground inserted posts for vertical support. The fishing rod holders each include a bait box and a cutting board where the cutting board forms the bottom of the bait box. The '129 device also includes triangular supports to brace the bait box and cutting board, and a slot for a bait knife.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,542,359 to Polries discloses a portable and collapsible fish cleaning table with a horizontal, upwardly facing work surface for supporting a fish during the cleaning operation. Collapsible legs are connected to the tabletop. The legs can be folded to a collapsed position for compact storage when the table is to be transported from one location to another. A retaining means is also operatively associated with the table legs for releasably holding the legs in the erect position to support the tabletop member during use.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,860,367 to Riegel et al. discloses a portable table for cleaning fish, fowl, and other game. A one-piece molded work tray is mounted on foldable legs. The foldable legs of preferably scissors type folding legs with a center brace and chain support. The work tray rests on the top of the unfolded legs. The rim of the work tray contains diagonal cutouts for the legs to pass through so that the folded legs may be stored inside the work tray.
Unfortunately, each of the aforementioned prior art references possess fall short of the optimum fishing accessory. The strap-on fishing rod holders of the Ratliffe, Gray, and Curtis patents do not support more than one rod holder, nor do they include an integral cleaning/filleting work surface. While the fishing rod holders of the Chestnut patents do include an integral cutting board, their “in-ground only” anchoring means places significant limitations on their utility. For example, they cannot be utilized on a pier or bridge surface because their ground-inserted posts cannot penetrate solid, man-made surfaces (e.g. structural concrete or steel). Finally, while possessing a collapsible construction claiming to be a sufficiently sturdy table for the fish cleaning/filleting process, the portable filleting tables of the Polries and Riegel et al. patents have no means for supporting a fishing pole, thereby preventing simultaneous cleaning/filleting and fishing.
There remains a need for a fishing rod support apparatus, with an integral horizontal working surface, that may be detachably attached to any vertical member such as a pier piling or a bridge structure. A device of this sort would allow a fisherman to make better use of his/her time by providing for simultaneous fishing and fish cleaning/filleting. The cleaning/filleting process would not have to wait until the fisherman obtained access to an appropriate work surface (e.g. a countertop located at his/her residence). To the best of the knowledge of the present inventor, no such apparatus exists. An apparatus of this type should, in addition to the capabilities outlined above, possess a simple design, be fabricated of strong, lightweight materials, and be economical to manufacture.